Cat Speak: Recognising and Understanding Behavior

Cat Speak: Recognising and Understanding Behavior by Brigitte Rauth-Widmann               Paperback Book :89 pages             

Great book on  cats.   I learned so many new things and I love learning new things.    I did not know from prior reading, though,  I have observed that cats do not see well up close.     Also their depth perception is not always too great.   I have noticed this behavior that sometimes cats seem not to be able to “see” something you put directly in front of them, but, use their sense of smell to find it.  This is discussed in the book.   I just thought if cats missed whatever they were jumping from that it was just a case of clumsiness but this book explains how and why that can happen and it can affect any cat.   She says when they do that thing where they arch their back that it is from fear.    I get that, but sometimes a kitten seems to do it in play, too.  I call it being a “Halloween Kitty” because they look like the traditional picture of a black cat arching its back in Halloween scenes.  I saw an excellent video of this and the cat actually stood up on its tip toes and scurried across the floor.    Kittens do that when they are focused on something smaller than them, too, a toy, or if outside a bug anything lower than them, I guess they do it instinctually to show the prey they are bigger than them.   I also didn’t know until I read it and saw the photos that cats puff out their cheeks for a variety of reasons all to look bigger than they are.    And cat speak -  I always talk to animals of all kinds.    My cats have always tended to talk back, not always in human English though they can say “Out,”  “In” one says, “Hello” and “No.”    If they don’t like something or don’t want to do something my little loves will either shake their heads or kick out which I think is a riot (like when humans are appalled by something and through their hand up as if to push whatever distasteful offensive idea or thing away. – Hilarious and effective – I get their drift).   She says cats that grow up being talked to observe human behavior and learn to communicate with us.    She says because cats are attentive they have evolved a rich vocabulary in which to communicate with people they use a completely different communication with other cats and also with other animals.  I can attest to this.    My cats make this trilling noise when talking to birds and as a kitten my Mama cat would even make some of the bird sounds when she was in the yard watching them.    The birds would come down on the ground with her when she was a kitten they were friends.   She got along with squirrels and rabbits as a youngster, too.   They had their own communication.   Cats are fascinating.   The more you talk to them, the more they pick up.   I have always talked to them and other animals, too.   A friend was over once and amazed that my cats and I could actually hold conversations with both parties engaging in vocal response.   He said, “I never knew cats could talk!  That is wild.”    I told, “Of course cats can talk.   They are another living species.   They are just different from us.   Kind of like how adults and babies can learn to understand one another or how humans from different cultures and languages can communicate.   Same thing.    We each pick up body language, facial cues and knowing a few words always helps.   And like a babies intonations – you learn being around cats that different inflections in their meows and miooooowwwwwwws mean different things.  Cats do this thing where they will bat their eyes when trying to cajole you into doing something  they want you to.  It is so cute!  Now for the R-rated portion.   Mating is painful for the female, hence why you may hear shrieking sounds because the male’s penis is covered in barbs.  Poor girl!  Dang!   Cats do a thing called the Flehmen Response where they curl their upper lip and breath in through both their mouth and nose for maximum assorption of scent.    The scent going in through their mouth saturates their saliva which carries the scent and pheromone particles to receptor cells.  Horses and Dogs also have this ability.  Pheromones are a species specific thing.  Humans can’t smell cat pheromones but cats can pick up information like a private detective on another cat just by inhaling them.  Spraying – don’t get me started!   I have been the target of it – trust me – you don’t want to be the target of it.  Enough said.   Cats have a network of blood vessels in their brains that allows them to cool their brains on hot days.   Fascinating isn’t it?    With every exhalation hot air is breathed out of the brain and body.  Dogs have this ability, too.   As a rule cats don’t pant unless it is an extremely hot day however if you notice your cat panting a lot better take him or her to the Vet because something may be wrong cats don’t sweat in the usual way say dogs do so excessive panting or panting for a long period of time could signify a serious illness..      The only areas on cats that have actual sweat glands are their feet.  I always thought it was funny if a cat lies down on his/her side with the pads on the bottom of their feet showing another cat will come up and smell their feet.   So, I learned there are sweet musky sweat secretions tht come out of their pads and scent mark their every step.  This book is just chock full of fascinating stuff to learn about your cat.    Clawing the furniture, fences, etc. is both a manicure and an opportunity to leave behind a little of their essence.   Like little Freddy Krugers they not only shed off the dead skin and shore up those little fishhooks on the end of their paws but they are also saying –my territory!   Thanks God for their claws being soft until they are around 5 weeks old or they would give their mothers a DNC on the way out.   Not having sharp claws at birth is again a big help to their mothers as when they do that kneading thing it doesn’t hurt their Mom, it likely soothes her while they are nursing and stimulates the milk production.     Paws are really important because cats sense things through the ground either under the ground or coming up on them from the vibrations they sense through their paws.   Cool skill to have.   Helps them to hunt when living outside.   So many more things you will learn from this most excellent book.   I highly recommend it.     You will come away a cat whisperer after this read.   10 paws up.